Sunday, July 31, 2011

I picked up Fahrenheit 451 at the store the other day. I know...I should be kicking myself for not having read it yet in my lifetime...the first three pages alone were great. My boyfriend's mother let me borrow her copy of The Help, however, and I always try and finish borrowed books first so I can get them back to the person who lent them to me as quickly as possible.

At first I wasn't very excited. I could tell already that there weren't going to be any dragons or monsters in this novel, but I had wanted to read it because I had heard that it was just "one of those books."

You know what I mean when I say, "One of those books," right? Those special narratives that you just can't put down because they do something to you. They change a little bit of who you are, or make you a bit wiser about a part of yourself that you hadn't realized existed. Sometimes this is a good thing, and sometimes you become aware sad things, unjust things, things that may even be your fault. Either way, no one who has read "one of those books" ever forgets it.

Well, if you haven't guessed already, I might as well tell you that The Help is "one of those books."

I know, I know...most people already know this. Most people have already read it. But I'm a little slow on these things, seeing as I haven't gotten the chance to read half of those life changing books everyone should read just yet.

I haven't finished it yet (in fact, I just started it yesterday), but let me say that I have teared up on at least two occasions. Then again, I did cry in the middle of Mellow Mushroom when they showed those two old lesbians getting married after being in love for most of their lives. Seriously. Just...bawled right in the middle of the restaurant. Everyone thought I had lost it. They're wrong, seeing as I never had a single thing to lose.

But anyways, back on topic!

The Help is good. Read it. You will cry and become extremely angry at the same time, just like when you read To Kill a Mockingbird.
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*shudder*

Atomic bombing of Nagasaki on August 9, 1945.Image via WikipediaAm I the only one who was shocked to find out that Adventure Time is post-apocalyptic?

I know...not exactly a writing related post...but for a few months that show has been just what was necessary to entertain my childish corn meal-mush mind. I had always thought of it as this happy little unexplained magical world floating around in a different plane of existence. Come to find out that everyone who survived after a nuclear war had just mutated.

Now that I've found out, I can't stop seeing examples everywhere, like the fact that most of the landscape is made up of ruined cities and most of the ghosts/skeletons strewn about are human. Seriously. Has anyone else noticed that nearly everyone who is dead is a human?

I don't know why this is flipping me out. Normally I would find such a thing incredibly cool.

Maybe it's because it adds substance to a television show that I had once thought of as nothing but a cute little program that was meant to be watched but not analyzed.  Or, maybe it's because such a thing makes the innocence and positive attitudes of the characters seem a bit morbid in light of what...you know...made them what they are.

Ugh. Especially how lighthearted they sound when they speak of the Mushroom War.

I mean, come on. A CHUNK OF THE WORLD IS MISSING. Good grief.

P.S.
I copy and pasted myself some nice little code to get a better blog background. And why?
Because I have no talent when it comes to CSS, that's why.
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Saturday, July 30, 2011

What time is it?

A panorama of a research room taken at the New...Image via WikipediaRESEARCH TIME!

Yeah, I know...that probably disappointed some of you. I deeply and sincerely apologize to you guys.

Today is the day that I do everyone's least favorite part of novel writing. No, it isn't outlining (even though I'm one of those crazy authors who actually thinks that outlining the  novel is fun). It's research...boring, dragging research.

But it doesn't have to be that way! Oh, no siree Bob.

In fact, if doing research on the subject about which you're writing a novel bores you so much, it might be best to reconsider trying to write a novel about it in the first place. I've done that before. Half way into the research I was like, "So if looking up this story information bores me so much, how on Earth am I going to be able to stand making a plot out of it and actually writing on it for at least three hours a day for two months or more?"

So I shelved it...or just gave up on it entirely.

I don't think this research will be all that boring if I think about it relative to my story. I won't need to do much seeing as nearly all of the creatures and places in my story are complete fabrications of my own mind, but I suppose it wouldn't hurt to look up some things about Brooklyn and Jewish culture. If anything, it will help to add verisimilitude to the previously underdeveloped beginning.

Will I kill myself before this is over?

Hopefully  not! :D
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Friday, July 29, 2011

Oh joy! It's a PLOT!

My "Seven Swords" Novel Writing NookImage by mshea via FlickrI've never been more excited in my entire life. I just sat down and, after finishing up the last of my character development, typed out the entire plot synopsis to my novel. AHHHH!

This has never happened before. Normally I start a novel with nothing but ideas and then leave it alone. If you think of the plot of a novel as getting from point A to point Z, my problem has definitely always been that I have points A, Z, G, O, M, Q, W, P, and R, but none of the others.

In other words, I only have a few disjointed, disconnected scenes of the novel and not the whole shebang. Well, I'm happy to say that the whole shebang is definitely mine in the case of this one. I've got all of the stops along the way planned out. Now all I have to do is outline the thing and then write it! EEEE!

I know it may seem like I'm overreacting, but this truly is a wonderful moment for me. It means I just might make it in this crazy business, after all. My problem before definitely was planning. Looking back at the way I had been writing before, it's no wonder I never got anywhere. I'm so glad I actually decided to pretty much develop the whole darn thing beforehand or I might have never gotten past my slump.

I have made this one rule for myself: The novel is everything. Even if it's five in the afternoon on a Saturday and you've been invited to go to a free pie party, you don't. You write. Because if you don't, that novel will never get finished. Never.
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Thursday, July 28, 2011

It makes me want to rip my hair out, but it's completely worth it.

Tree SilhouettesImage by John-Morgan via FlickrSo my novel is finally underway...sort of.

 I'm trying to have the first draft done in three months. I really feel like I have a chance of finishing this one seeing as its more than just a jumbled mess of ideas, so quite a bit of energy is going into the developing and outlining stages. In fact, I spent four hours today on character development alone. Granted, I did stare blankly at my writing journal for some of that time...but it's still something, right? It truly is amazing how long it can take just to decently fill out a bio sheet for one measly little person.


The main character is a fourteen year old Jewish girl living in Brooklyn, though not much of the story is set in the city. She gets taken into a world that the inhabitants refer to as "The Hidden World" by a man known as  "the retriever."

As  you can probably guess, it all goes down hill from there.

It's a magical little world full of all sorts of schmaltzy fairy tale elements and all that jazz, but its sinister secret is that every few years it must take a human sacrifice from our world to ensure that it survives. It's a bit dark, and I don't know how happy the ending is going to be, but I'm thinking that it has the potential to be a pretty good work. I honestly can't wait to get started on outlining the actual novel. This may even extend into a series if I can make enough content.
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Wednesday, July 27, 2011

Tips for Writers Using (or Choosing) Pen Names

Book photograph with flipping pages.Image via WikipediaYes, it's another list. I tried typing this out in paragraph form, but it just wasn't aesthetically pleasing. Nobody likes walls of text, right? I mean...some people do, but they always put me to sleep.

I have a bit of a confession: I hate using a pen name. If I didn't have an incredibly hard name to pronounce and spell, I wouldn't. It's just so...odd. I feel like I'm lying or playing pretend. Quite a few writers use them by choice, however. Even more desire to do so, but can't quite find the name that's right for them. Here's what I've learned in my tedious search to find the right (or at the very least, most acceptable) name with which to sign all of their creative works.


  1. Don't be a ham.   I cannot stress this enough. I even think of "Harlow Clark" as too showy, but quite a few people out there want to write with names like "Rain" or "Stardust". I seriously wanted to go with Jane Doe just for giggles, but I figured that it would seem hammy to people even though I was going for the opposite of hammy.
  2. Make it genre specific...if you want.    Sometimes it may be helpful to choose a sort of...edgy?...name if you're a horror writer, or a beautiful and romantic sort of name for a romance novel. It may just help make the novel! What would A Series of Unfortunate Events be without Lemony Snicket? The series just wouldn't have the same sort of magic to it if it were written by "Daniel Handler". And what on Earth would people think of steamy erotica written by a Howard O'Brien instead of Anne Rice?
  3. Make sure it rolls off the tongue.   A name that has a nice ring to it is also likely to be remembered. I've also heard it mentioned that a two syllable first name and a one syllable last name is a good choice, though no one can really tell you why. 
  4. Unisex is always a good choice.    Especially if you're female and write science fiction, crime, or horror novels. It isn't fair, but it's a known fact that people are far more likely to pick up a book of such a genre that was written by a man. If a name is unisex, people are also more likely to assume the author is a man than a woman. I've found myself guilty of this from time to time, as well. You'd be surprised how writers turn out to be women once you look them up! Methinks the tables may be turning. *wink**wink*
  5. You can always just use your initials.    If you have a name like Svietgein Horwinkle Zvet Henderson, you can bet it will be easier to sell your books if you write them as S. H. Z. Henderson, or any combination of the first three. It saves a lot of trouble choosing a pen name, and if people find it hard to say the initials, well, they can always just get over it and call you by your last name.

On a totally unrelated matter, I found a random folder on my computer titled, "Japanese Horror Files". I opened it up and found a bunch of images of my friends and people I barely know that I don't remember saving, plus a few weird extremely blurry images and some random anime sprites. There were even some stills from South Park in there. I find this incredibly odd because I'm the only one using this computer. I'm running Linux, so I don't think there's a chance some kind of virus put it there. Spooky, eh? 
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Tuesday, July 26, 2011

Fun with Writing Prompts: First Memory


I had to start writing for twelve minutes and not stop until the clock was up. I hope this isn't too frightening.


Most people can't remember as far back as their first year on this earth. Seeing as I can barely remember what I had for breakfast this morning, it's odd that I can.

My first memory hangs in my mind, but not vividly. It's more like a memory of a memory than an actual memory itself...not exactly crystal clear, but there nonetheless. I remember my mother carrying me on her hip. I can also recall a cloudy sky, but that may just be the haze that naturally hangs over the things that we try to remember from the distant past. I like to think that it was storming, however. I've always liked storms and the energy they put into the air.

I can't see my father. I've always imagined him walking behind my mother, but I may have just erased him from the picture. I can, however, see the landlord taking us up the steps to the porch. They were blue then, something they haven't been in a long time. He didn't have a face...I can only remember his hat. I don't know what sort of hat it was...just that it was a hat.

If I squint my eyes and try as hard as I can to visualize the scene, I can see the screen door. Beyond there is nothing but black. The landlord, whose name I believe was Jason, beckons. We follow. My mother's hand reaches for the door handle. After that I can remember nothing more. I wish I could at least remember Jason's face. I think he was fat. His shirt may have been white. Maybe the hat was white, too. It bothers me, having his image so close and yet so far away. He was a terror to me as a child, you know. He would always shake his fist at me when he saw me riding my bike and threaten to “get me”.

Bikes weren't allowed in our neighborhood. It was our favorite rule to break.

If I had known what I was getting into when I was carried up those steps that day, I probably would have screamed as loudly as I could.  


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Monday, July 25, 2011

Four Websites to Break the Tension of Writer's Block

Oh, good Lord. It's another blog post in the form of a list. Lord Xenu help us all.

Eternal penImage via WikipediaIn case it hasn't made itself obvious by now, I can't think of a single thing to write lately. Isn't that just the most irritating feeling in the universe? Staring at that blinking cursor...chewing on your pen until you can taste ink...it's just infuriating. So, what's a writer to do?

Why, compose a blog post about writer's block, of course!

Or you could just whine to everyone you see regardless of whether or not they care. That's normally the route I choose, but it never really does much good. I've found that visiting the following websites can be a tremendous help, even if it's just to have a good and slightly inspirational laugh.


  1. Language is a Virus - While most people have heard of this one, but I can never keep from mentioning it. The poetry generator always proves to be nothing short of hilarious. If anything, it will stop you from being so uptight about the fact that the stupid poem you've been working on for the past week just refuses to budge past the first quatrain. Sometimes just relaxing a bit can make all of the difference, after all. The site also offers quite a few inspirational articles, not to mention writing prompts that can force you out of your comfort zone. I've used a few in the past to compose some of my favorite of the poems I've written...you know...the ones addressed to the reader that most people find a bit creepy.
  2. WeHeartIt.com - I love visual inspiration. If it strikes just the right chords, a picture really can be worth a thousand words, maybe even more. It doesn't work for everybody, however, as no two people write (or get inspired) in the same way. If you're one of those people who could just go to town on a manuscript after seeing a picture of a mountain or a beautiful work of art, this website is most certainly for you. 
  3. Seventh Sanctum - Seventh Sanctum, much like Language is a Virus, is another well known website that's great for playing around and having a good laugh. While some of their generators prove to be more amusing that anything, I would definitely be lying if I said that it hasn't helped me to compose some serious works. You'd really be surprised at what a silly sounding randomly generated collection of words can stir up inside of you. In my opinion, such websites do a wonderful job of proving that inspiration will come to you if you could only allow yourself to forget that you were looking for it in the first place.
  4. Random Book Title Generator - I'm just going to be completely honest with you here and say that this generator is only on the list because it's one of the funniest things I've come across on the Internet. I can't really say much else about it...you'll just have to see for yourself. As is the case with Seventh Sanctum, you never know when it will actually inspire you. For the most part, however, it's just a wonderful way to make yourself laugh when you've probably done nothing but bang your head against your computer screen for the preceding week.
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Saturday, July 23, 2011

A Clockwork Story-line

fairy tale picImage by Kjirstin via Flickr
That is by far the worst parody blog post title I have ever seen, let alone conjured. Forgive me, father, for I have sucked.

Lately I've had an inexplicable affinity with all things involving clockworks. I think I'll scream if I can't incorporate it into my mostly fairy-tale based novel. As of now I have no idea how I'm going to make it work, but it's at least obvious now that it's either going to be incredibly cool or tragically terrible.

I'm not going to call this affinity that I have "Steampunk" because, to be completely honest, no one really seems to know what it is. Plus, I'm not willing to walk around in Victorian clothing. Well...I'm willing, but let's just say that I'm not able.

Anyone who knows me knows that I would dress up as a giant cupcake if I could. Damn society. Not letting me be weird.

BUT...as I was saying...maybe it could work if I stick some sort of machine at the center of my story world. That should give me my gear fix while still giving me my fairy tale fix. I just don't want to to look forced. There's nothing more annoying than forced fiction. Don't you just hate it when it seems like even the characters know what kind of story they're in? Or when the story is set in a technologically advanced age and the author spends nearly an entire page describing gadgets and only a paragraph on actual progress in the plot?

It's like...we get it. They're all in the future. Now what's going to HAPPEN in the future?

I also hate hearing that a book is completely wonderful when I've tried to read it, myself, only to get so  bored that I can't even manage the first few chapters. It's like dangling all of that wonderful-ness everyone is talking about right in front of my face. I know it's in there, but the storytelling bores me before I can get to it.

Of course, sometimes people will tell you that a book is wonderful and you'll read the whole thing cover to cover and never get to the amazing story they've been telling you about.

Such was the case with a certain book series I read a while back. Yes. The entire series. I read it all just because my so called friends said that it started off bad but got better.

Guess what?

It never got better.
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Of Cakes and Filling

There truly is nothing worse than that awful fuzzy feeling that clouds your mind while you stare thoughtlessly at a blinking cursor. Most of the time I choose a quick workout to end writer's block, but today I'm going with cookies.

I want them, and that's just fine.

I would also slaughter an entire village of pygmies for a whoopie pie right about now. I just learned they existed about a month ago, and they're all I can think about.

There is no way on planet Earth that I'm the only person who has sat down to write only to find themselves thinking of nothing but tiny cakes split down the middle like an English muffin and filled with cream. The odd thing is that I'm certain that, were I to try a whoopie pie, I wouldn't like it. They sort of remind me of those Oreo Cakesters that came out a while ago. While I liked them, they weren't exactly something I could finish. One bite just seemed to be enough. I never finished one. It was strange.

So, what am I to do in the face of that blinking cursor when there's nothing but whoopie pies buzzing around in my brain?

I'll tell you what I'm to do.

O, chocolate cake!
Is filling necessary?
Desserts consume me.

I'm going to write a terrible haiku about baked goods. That's what I'm going to do.

Good God. This is an all time low for me.

Thursday, July 21, 2011

Just Call me the Hyacinth Girl

T.S. Eliot photographed one Sunday afternoon i...Image via WikipediaOne of the most common criticisms my poetry receives is that I use too many metaphors and allusions. I like to keep it nice and vague, too, unless it's a special poem. The more other people can relate to the poem, the happier it makes me. I like people. People are awesome. LONG LIVE PEOPLE!....*ahem*....

But, anyway, on with how the above statement relates to today's post...

...if the idea is that ambiguity and metaphors make a poem bad, then take a gander at this one.

T.S. Eliot's Wasteland is my favorite poem, and arguably the best one ever written. For the first few years of the poem's existence, nobody had any idea what he was talking about.

Luckily, the page to which I've linked provides a handy little reading guide. It's a bit of a long read for a poem, but it is an epic after all. Reading this poem is like going on a journey, I love it!
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A Note Regarding My Updates and Pony Mind Control

Pinkie Pie Plush - 001Image by ZATZAi via Flickr. Anyone who has read Cupcakes knows to be very, very afraid of Pinkie Pie.My goal is to update this thing twice a week so that I can be sure that I keep things going. Sure, I could update it often but not regularly. I'm the kind of person who appreciates knowing when something is coming, however, and I feel like other people will appreciate it, too.

I'm going to post whenever it strikes my fancy, but I'm going to try my very hardest to make sure that there is at least a post ever Monday and Thursday. So far I've been going at one post every day, but you know how hard that can be when life knocks on your door and kicks you in the face.

I wouldn't be crazy to assume that's  happened to everybody, would I?

That being said, I would like to leave you with this solid piece of advice:

I'm sure you've heard of this "My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic" craze that has been sweeping the Internet. If you haven't watched it already, I recommend you don't. You'll watch it again, and you'll have no idea why. Then you'll find yourself watching it a second time, a third time, and a fourth time.

That is when you will notice all of your friends making fun of you. My boyfriend refuses to watch because he believes they use some sort of hypnosis to attract men, and he wants no part of all that hoodoo.
I read the fanfiction Cupcakes before I had even heard of the show, and I swear that that's the only thing that got me started with it. Everyone else says it ruins Pinkie Pie. I have a deliciously morbid sense of humor, and have to admit that the story is the main reason why she's my favorite. Enhanced by Zemanta

Just Write: Quite Possibly the Best Writing Advice Ever Given

WritingImage by jjpacres via FlickrThe best thing you can do (besides showing and not telling) is to just let your first draft...you know...happen. Don't stress too much. That's what revision is for, anyway.

Yesterday I didn't quite manage to get in my two hundred words. I know that's not much of a goal for more seasoned writers, but I tend to get distracted. Two hundred words a day is a pretty reasonable number from which I can work my way up.

Oh! The joy of one day being able to write one thousand words on a bad day...alas, I fear it shall never come.

Well, the other day I sort of got on a roll and managed five hundred in about ten minutes...but that's not typical.

Normally it's all like..."Ooo! This is happening in the story!"

...and then ten seconds later...

"Nah...nah....this should happen instead...*super backspace of DOOM*

After about two hours of me doing this I've got about two hundred words. Sad, I know, but that's why I'm trying to listen to all of those people who tell me I should just write instead of worrying about the first draft being as perfect as the final. It is just a first draft, after all, isn't it?

After years of saying, "No! No, I can't do that! I have to make it good from the start or else...you know?", I think I finally understand why every writer in the world I've asked for advice has told me that. It really does work! You actually get something done. I would recommend this to everyone were it not extremely possible that everyone else is already doing it.

So if you aren't...DO IT! It's fun. I promise.

I just want to write stories that people enjoy. Honestly, where would any of us be without a good story to take us somewhere we've never dreamed we'd go?

Not in Mexico. That's for sure.

Not in Mexico.

You know, sometimes it's best to ignore me.
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Wednesday, July 20, 2011

Alabaster Cities

This is an old poem that I wrote a few months ago. I entered it into a contest and managed to snag second place, though I'll admit that it's nowhere near my best work. I've spruced it up a bit since then, so I hope that it's easier to get the message across. It's essentially about racism, but like most poems its meaning can definitely be expanded.

Even unto the realm of chocolate filled donuts. Yes. Even there.

-----



He walks through alabaster streets
Where no one knows his name,
Where they pelt him with stones
As if they themselves have never sinned
And insist that he is less than human.

And he cries
Oh he cries
For Father to take him home.
But Father,
He knows
That the boy has been home all along.

So sing, son of stone!
Lift your voice to your maker.
You are human---
Perhaps more human
Than them all.

Break the ivory towers
Like a concrete-cracking flower.
Crumble into rubble,
O Jericho,
And let the people pass.
We have waited too long
To be freed from your tyranny. 
We are children of the future
And not of the past.

Tuesday, July 19, 2011

I'm in Love With My Kindle.

This is not news.

*prepares for deluge of angry hipsters yelling that real writers don't kill the printed word*

It has caused me to read a whole slew of new books that I otherwise would have never picked up. They're cheaper, and I can read new writers who haven't been published yet.

Of course, that also means running into hundreds of first person stories about an eleven year old girl with a vocabulary straight out of a Thesaurus who has abilities that only Jesus, Satan, and Bill Clinton combined should have. Oh, and guess what? Everyone HATES her for these abilities! They also constantly tell her she is wrong, only to find out that she was right and get screwed over.

GAH!

Am I the only completely annoyed by this? I can't be the only one who's put down a book the second the ditzy, cheerleader type main character uses a word like "microorganism" in narration. First person is, in my opinion, supposed to reflect a character's train of thought.

I know that everyone out there wants that super special awesome character who can burn down entire cities with a single glare, but said character completely turns most readers off if they can't relate to him/her. Characters should be human, too. People want to read about people. Nobody wants to read a story about someone the author obviously wants them to envy.

Not that having magical powers isn't good...it's just that nowadays they're more of a Deus Ex Machina than anything else. How is Mary Jane going to change as a character by getting out of the aforementioned situation?

Well, she isn't! Because her magical powers that make her more awesome and smarter than everyone else in the universe enable her to just poof right out of that concrete room seven miles underground.

I'm more of a fan of average characters who become less average as a result of being put in out of the ordinary situations, like Alice going down the rabbit hole into Wonderland. But then again, apparently I'm often guilty of neglecting my characters. In fact, according to a Mary Sue Test I took, my characters are anything but.

I scored a negative seven.

Maybe I should throw them a bone or two to keep things interesting. I don't know...a little magical animal friend or some crap.
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My First Person is a Trainwreck

Though I haven't given it as much attention as I had anticipated this summer, I do actually have a novella that I'm writing along with the novel I posted a snippet of earlier. I wanted it done by the end of August, but computer problems have made that entirely impossible. I would, however, like to post the Prologue seeing as I desperately need some content.

I'd also like to mention that I'm HORRIBLE at first person, which is the point of view I've chosen for this particular story. It seems like the only possible way for the plot to have the impact I want.  Unfortunately, I know that I also have a lot of potential to screw it up.

The worst possible thing that I could do in this situation is panic. I'm a neurotic mess, and I'll admit that it's hilarious. I sure hope to God that someone finds this entertaining. I truly do need to create a character who is as "mentally hilarious" as I am.

---

       I’ll bet that when you look at me, all you can see is a shadow.
      
       I thought so. I probably shouldn’t have even made contact with you. I can tell you’re scared, but don’t be. Trust me when I say that you’re lucky that it was me who approached you and not one of the others.
      
       Truth be told, I just wanted to see if I was really gone, or if I still had a chance to run. Now I know, but I don’t want to go just yet, selfish at that may seem. In fact, I want to stall for as much time as I can.
      
       He’ll find me, I know that’s inevitable. He’s probably closer by than I think at this very moment. I’m more frightened now than I was when I first met him…or it, rather.
      
       He isn’t a “he”, I know that, too. I’m just much more comfortable with knowing that he’s something I’m familiar with instead of…well, instead of something that’s “alien” to me, for lack of a better word.
      
       I’m probably the only one you’ll ever meet that’s a “she” instead of an “it”.  If you’re lucky, you’ll never meet another one of us again. Because the chances of you meeting one like me…one that used to be one of you…are slim.
      
       Of course you’ve seen us before, maybe even heard us. Those ominous shadows lurking in the corner of your peripheral vision that you’d always assumed belonged to something…a person or object…beyond what you were capable of seeing. If only you knew just how far beyond…..
      
       I know you’re frightened enough as it is. A random shadow speaking to you out of the darkness can be quite unnerving. But it isn’t like we…I suppose I should be considering myself one of them now…haven’t tried speaking to you before. You’ve trained yourself not to hear us. I guarantee that the memories are buried there, somewhere deep within the file labelled “Fleeting Childhood Moments”.
      
       I would also recommend that you don’t go looking for those memories. Your brain has blocked us out for a reason. You were only able to notice me because, well…because I’m not really one of them. Not entirely. Like I said before, you would see what I meant if you were to try and find some of the others. But don’t. Please. You’re living in a bubble, each and every one of you. Don’t burst it, no matter how wonderful you think it would be to peek beyond the veil.
      
       Me, I didn’t have a choice. Someone burst my bubble for me, and, well, here I am. Forgive me for telling you my story, for bursting your bubble, too.  I know you don’t want to hear it. But I don’t want to go just yet, and, well…you can give me that much, can’t you? Besides, it won’t be just my story for much longer. They’ll be coming for all of you soon enough. You deserve a warning, even if you won’t listen.

Monday, July 18, 2011

I begin this story in the same way I've began many others...

...with a vague and possibly flawed introduction in the form of a flashback attempting to draw the reader into the rest of the story. I've been told that the main reason I can't finish projects is my habit of writing my first draft as if it were the final when I should simply just be writing. I've been trying harder to take that advice and just "write". The following introduction to my newest project (which, God willing, I will finish) is the result.

I'm not happy with it, but then again I'm not happy with anything I do. To be honest, I'm far too frightened of what might happen if I were to allow myself to be satisfied.

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The cave walls, bathed in an orange glow from the fire, were crumbling all around her. The entire world wanted to crush Muriel under its weight and trap her flattened body underground where no one would ever find it.
If, of course, anyone would even look. Muriel wasn’t the fastest thinker you’d ever come across, but she had been given due time to figure out that this sort of thing had happened before. 
In front of her lay the dank opening to the rest of the catacombs. If she took one more step into that darkness that was so thick it looked like she could choke on it, she may never find her way back again. Worse yet, she would more likely than not be trapped inside when the whole damn thing collapsed. 
But if she didn’t? Well, then she would never know.
Biting her lip and shaking with both fear and anticipation, Muriel listened to the sounds of her footfalls as she took a first, second, and then a third step into the rocky aperture. Once she had passed the stone gateway, the shaking earth became silent as quickly as if switched off by the press of a button.

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Now, if only I could begin from the actual beginning and work up to that particular point in the plot.
Of course, it could really put a damper on things if I decide to take the above mentioned scene out of the story...you wouldn't believe how many times that has happened. Seeing as it's the most climactic point in the plot, however, I don't believe I will. 
On a related note, am I the only person who has changed a character's name and been forced to go back through the entire manuscript and make the appropriate adjustments? 
The first time that happened to me was definitely the last. Now I try as hard as I can to make sure I've got the name set in stone before I begin writing. I decided to change a character's name from "Mark" to "Lucas", and since I was already at least ten chapters in, I simply used "find and replace".
What I ended up with was chapter after chapter of people making "reLucass" instead of remarks and "Lucasing" things onto pieces of paper.
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It pays to be a programmer.

Unfortunately, I am not one. That's why I've had to go through a cornucopia of blogging services in order to find one that didn't make me want to rip my hair out for one reason or the other.

I want to try to update this thing bi-weekly. I want every post to be nice, long, and meaningful, which makes it hard to get a post out every day. I suppose I'll be sticking some random snippets of stories I've been working on along with the occasional poem. I warn you, though, that my poetry is completely awful. You  may just lose your soul from reading it. I'm not even kidding. I feel that my prose is at least a little better, if not a lot better.

I went to Blogger because I've had a life-long love affair with Google.

If you think that's a metaphor, well then you just don't know how creepy I can be.
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